The Trials and Tribulations of Scaling a Rock Wall, Summers-Style
by Mutant-Enemy-730
Summary: It would've been so much easier to talk like normal people who like each other for years without saying anything. Why make things simple and straight-foward? One-shot.


It's been forever! Whoops!

General disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon & Mutant Enemy. I make no profit.

Little one-shot born out of my love of bouldering and reading a bunch of fanfic recently.

Mostly un-edited. Forgive me any errors.

* * *

"Tell me again, _why _did I _ever_ agree to do this?" Buffy griped from below Faith, her voice slightly out of breath.

Faith paused in her ascent, and looked over her shoulder at Buffy, who was situated slightly below her along the rock face.

"Because you were drunk on tequila, and said you'd rather climb a rock than kiss me," Faith replied.

Buffy snorted, her voice lower, "It wasn't a fair game anyway."

Faith exhaled in frustration, "It was fucking Spin the Bottle, B. How could that be unfair? It's your own damn hand that did it."

Buffy fell silent at that; and Faith focused on where her feet should move next, her right hand dipping into the chalk bag hanging on her hip. A thought occurred to her before she began moving and she turned to look down once more at her sister Slayer.

"Besides, you also said you wanted to try something new, so stop complaining."

Buffy huffed again, shaking her left arm out behind her to get the blood to rush down into her fingers, her body hugging the rock face for balance. Glancing up at Faith as the younger Slayer shifted her foot to a higher hold and slide up higher on the rock face, Buffy quirked an eyebrow, a playful smile teasing at the corners of her mouth.

"At least the view is good from here," Buffy remarked after a beat.

Faith snorted at the comment, more than used to the flirty banter. Years of it had provided Faith with the arms-length flirting she constantly embarked on with Buffy. It was tiring though, especially when it hit so close to home. So close to what she wanted.

"Yeah, you climb any faster B, and you can just reach up with those pouty lips of yours and kiss my ass," Faith shot back over her shoulder as she moved up another three feet, the top of the rock only a few moves out of her reach.

"Don't tempt me Faith, it's a nice ass to look at," Buffy replied, shimmying up another few feet.

Faith paused in her assessment of the rock wall, and titled her hips closer, dropping her right arm down to shake the blood to her fingers, using the moment to look hard at Buffy over her shoulder. The blonde was also pausing, her gaze unwavering as she locked eyes with Faith. Faith felt like her heart was being squeezed with a sudden panic. She wanted…

God, how she wanted.

"You got something you wanna tell me, B?" Faith lobbed the question with a quirked eyebrow, her face guarded.

Buffy exhaled loudly, her gaze not leaving Faith's, "I didn't want to kiss you in front of everyone."

Faith rolled her eyes, "Prude."

"Not."

"Are," Faith scoffed and began to climb, thinking that was it. Buffy was just being her normal self. Why would things suddenly sway into Faith's favor? Fate never had any consideration for her heart before.

"Faith…" Buffy groaned in frustration, seeing the dark haired Slayer begin climbing again. "I…"

"What, B? Spit it out, 'cause my arms are getting mighty tired holding myself up here," Faith shot out, adjusting her feet to look down again.

"I didn't think I could stop if I started," Buffy answered softly, her words coming out in a rush of nerves, "And I didn't want everyone to see that."

Faith regarded Buffy for a moment. Maybe it had been real flirting. Maybe it had…

Faith growled low in her throat. Frustration beyond the telling of it at how roundabout her sister Slayer was about fucking _everything_. She couldn't have just asked to speak to her privately? No, of course not.

She had to wait until they were 40 feet off the ground, scaling a rock wall on an intense hike in the middle of the woods. Alone.

Faith snorted to herself,_ totally a Buffy move._

She remained silent and began climbing up, her pace increasing slightly.

"What? Was that wrong? Why are you moving?" Buffy's panicked voice shot up to Faith.

"I want to get on top of this _fucking_ rock as fast as I can so I can kiss you properly, you asshat!" Faith shot back. "Now, move your ass."

Faith didn't have to look over her shoulder to hear how fast Buffy began moving below her. Reaching the top of the rock, Faith hauled herself over the edge and rolled onto her back, releasing the clip on her belt and pulling the water bottle and chalk bag free from her side. Taking a large gulp from the bottle, Faith twisted the lid closed and tossed the whole belt further from the edge.

A heaving breath and scrabbling on rock to her right alerted Faith to Buffy's immediate arrival. She felt a grin spread out across her face. Buffy's body heaved up over the edge and landed in a pile at her side. Faith turned her head and took in the rapid rise and fall of Buffy's chest; unabashedly raking over the curves of her abdomen and the swell of her breasts before meeting Buffy's eyes.

"Hi," Buffy's lips twitched nervously.

Faith shook her head in amusement, "You are such an awkward human being, Summers."

Leaning up onto her arm, Faith threaded her free hand into Buffy's hair and leaned down without pausing, sealing her mouth over Buffy's. A soft gasp from Buffy was all she needed and Faith trailed her tongue teasingly along Buffy's lower lip. A hand came up to tangle in her hair, and Faith groaned at feeling nails dig into her scalp. This was so much more than she had ever imagined.

And then Buffy opened her mouth. Faith was lost in the wet heat of it all. She growled at teeth tugging at her top lip, and choked on a moan when Buffy rolled them to straddle her thighs, her hands winding into Faith's hair.

Breaking the kiss, Buffy leaned her head back, her body arching into the kisses Faith immediately shifted to her neck, and she ground down against Faith when she nipped lightly at the scar on her neck.

"God Faith, if I'd known this was what I was missing out on…" Buffy began, her voice husky.

"What about it?" Faith replied, her voice muffled by skin.

Buffy tugged on Faith's hair, causing the dark Slayer to release the skin she was currently marking and laying her head back on the ground.

"I would've made a move a long, _long_, time ago," Buffy finished, a playful grin spreading across her face.

"Well B," Faith began, her hands sliding down Buffy's sides to cup her ass. Buffy hummed, her eyes slipping closed, and Faith was suddenly very, very horny. "Way I see it…"

Buffy's eyes opened again, startled suddenly as Faith shifted to stand them both up. Buffy let her legs slide to the ground, concern marring her face.

"We've got an eight mile hike ahead of us and not a soul to hear a peep," Faith winked, and leaned into to capture Buffy's lips in a chaste kiss before pulling away to pick up her chalk bag and water bottle.

Cinching the belt back around her waist, Faith looked over her shoulder to see the dawning understanding on Buffy's face.

"Race you to the tree line," Faith continued.

Buffy licked her lips and quirked an eyebrow, "Winner gets?"

Faith bit her lip in contemplation, enjoying watching Buffy focus on the flash of her teeth, "How fast can you get those shorts off, B?"

Buffy took a depth, steadying breath, then let a smile break out across her face before sprinting past Faith.

Faith chuckled and took chase. _Everyone wins._


End file.
